The Forbidden
by SRplaya
Summary: He always thought his employer's daughter is a beautiful creature. She always has that pure, alluring beauty despite her annoying, ditzy nature that can force someone into strangling her to death. When she's standing before him all dressed up in white, he can't stop himself from feeling the forbidden temptation.
1. Chapter 1

**Anyone know any good Kuraneo fanfic? with M rated stuff if possible XD Please let me know if you do.**

**I love this couple! Enough said.**

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**Chapter 1: "Teenagers"**

She poised elegantly as she examined herself in front of the full-length mirror.

Her soft baby blue hair flowed in a wave that went above her waist. The white cocktail dress she had on was complimenting her slender figure. Its top was decorated with sparkling diamonds, and the fact that it was sleeveless revealed her flawless collarbone wrapped in smooth alluring skin. Its layered puffy skirt stopped a few lengths above her knees, exposing her delicate pair of lower limbs that stood impressively firm in a pair of high velvet heels. A diamond necklace her father gifted her adorned her bare neck and a pair of matching earnings hung gorgeously, dangling from her ears.

"You look gorgeous Neon-sama." Eliza told her earnestly.

"Really?" Neon beamed, smiling brightly at her attendant who stood by her right. She was aware of how fabulous she looked in her new dress, but even so she had to ask. There were times she doubted if her attendants were telling the truth. After all, everyone always lied to her, even her father, especially her father.

She waited for Eliza's forthcoming response, her pair of blue orbs searching for any sign of dishonesty.

"Of course you are."

None. No nervous blinking eyes or fake smiles, not that she can tell.

Neon turned to her left, looking at her other attendant. "What about you Lila, what do you think?"

Lila gave her a thumb up, a genuine smile graced her lips. "Perfect!"

Failed to catch any loopholes from their 'facades', she decided they were telling the truth and she twirled around as she hummed happily. All the while her attendants were giggling in response to her childlike performance.

"Now then, shall we head downstairs? Kurapika is waiting for you outside." Eliza notified her.

"Only Kurapika?"

"Yes Neon-sama." Lila answered in Eliza's stead.

"Melody and Basho have to stay and guard the mansion."

"What about Linssen?"

"He took a week off to visit his family and your father's bodyguards are guarding the the vault."

"Eh? Then I am stuck with Kurapika for the entire afternoon?" Neon pouted childishly.

Eliza and Lila stared at her in confusion. "Mind if I ask Neon-sama, what's wrong with Kurapika?" Eliza inquired.

"He's scary!" Neon exclaimed, her hands clutching at the hem of her dress. "Always grumpy and depressed he is. I miss Dalzollene." She finished in a softer tone, looking down at her skirt. Yes, she missed her former head bodyguard and the others, who had lost their lives in Yorknew. She didn't know exactly what happened and she didn't want to find out either. After she had witnessed Eliza's heartbreaking cry, mourning for her lover –one of the bodyguard, Squala-, a foreign feeling surfaced within Neon. She still remembered the exact feeling she had gotten as she watched Eliza broke down in tears. At first she was confused, couldn't understand why, but she was stoned on her feet and her heart suddenly felt heavy, and the next thing she knew her eyesight was hazed by her tears. She had wanted to go over to Eliza and comfort her, but what was she supposed to say? That Squala would return? The dead cannot come back to life, she had told herself. Day after day, the disturbing feeling grew as she realized she could never see and play with Dalzollene and Squala or his dogs ever again and she missed that. She missed them. How could she not have felt any remorse when she was first informed of Dalzollene's death?

Eliza forced a smile, her tears were threatening to fall as she tried to convince Neon with a shaky yet gentle voice. "Kurapika is a great guy and he's very strong. I am sure he will do his best to protect you." It had been a couple of weeks since her lover's death and she hadn't gotten over the fact that he's gone forever and she wondered, what was she still doing here in this place filled with their memories? Most of the bodyguards were either dead or had quit the job, the only few left were Neon-sama's and her father's loyal bodyguards.

The tension was so thick that for a moment there Lila could do nothing but watch them wallowing in melancholy. She then decided to start up anything that could subdue the tension. "But Neon-sama, don't you think he's kind of cute?" she sprouted out of nowhere. Frankly, from all the bodyguards hired to work for Neon-sama, except for the deceased female bodyguard, Baise- Kurapika was the good-looking one.

"Huh?" Neon mouthed, and she and Eliza stared bewildered at Lila as if she's some kind of an alien.

Wrong topic, but she had successfully caught their attention.

Eliza suddenly clapped her hands together as if she had come to realize something obvious. "Neon-sama, if I'm not mistaken, I think he's older than you by a year."

Neon quirked a brow skeptically. "What are you trying to say?"

"Neon-sama, you have never actually met a guy your age before have you?"

"No. I've always been homeschooled so…" Neon's expression suddenly turned mortified and beet red by her own assumption. "A-are you trying to set me up with Kurapika?" Sure Kurapika was a good looking boy, but she had never thought of him in 'that' way.

"Um, no." Eliza smiled nervously. For a naïve innocent child, Neon had a wild imagination, probably from watching too much television. "What I am trying to say is, why don't you try and talk to him. Find out more about what people your age likes to do these days, try to get him out of his shell. I heard he has a couple of teenage friends, maybe he can introduce them to you and that way you can make new friends."

Neon scrunched up her eyebrows, her eyes looked almost ready to pop out of their sockets. Why hadn't she thought of that?

"But what does this have to do with him being cute?" Lila asked.

"Huh? Nothing really." Eliza simply answered and this made Lila fell over comically. "Though that could be the plus side to this attempt." She added.

"What do you mean?" Neon questioned curiously, liking the idea and was eager to hear more.

Eliza's face immediately sparkled, thinking she had done well in peaking her Boss's interest and she suddenly had the confidence of a counselor. "You can never get bored of watching a pretty boy even though he's boring right?"

"Uh-hum." Neon nodded. She liked to watch certain dramas and movies only when the main actor was good looking, even if the entire story line itself was a total let down.

"So this is a good opportunity for you Neon-sama! You won't just be wasting your time trying to talk through his cold demeanor. You can at least get the side dish, having the experience to speak with a cute guy who is your age."

"Ah! I get it." Lila followed up, her expression matching Eliza's."Ne Neon-sama, why don't you try to study his appearance? I bet you will see him in a different light! and when you do, you'll get this thrill, 'doki-doki' and fuzzy feelings. I think you will like the experience!"

Neon stared at her two handmaidens in confusion. "I don't get it." She admitted, she enjoyed times like this when her maids open up to her and their gossip and theories never ceased to amaze her, but there were times when she couldn't understand what they were saying, why are they excited? Was that even funny? Was she supposed to laugh along and said something?

"Um, well, I believe Neon-sama will experience that soon enough." Lila assured her, a gentle smile on her face. "Then there's another wonderful feeling that comes after." She sighed dreamily. "Love."

Eliza murmured grimly, her head tilted down and her long hair covered her delicate face. They have once again stepped over the boundaries and Neon and Lila could do nothing but exchanged a sympathetic look. After a few moments of bitter silence, Eliza looked up, teary violet eyes met Neon's blue ones. "Neon-sama, promise me this. When you find someone you love, protect him and never let him go."

For a moment there she couldn't find the strength to speak. She pictured herself in Eliza's situation, and mentally shuddered at the thought. Would she feel worse than she already did? Would she wallow in the sadness, crying as Eliza did? Skip meals for days? Having sleepless night? What if her father, the only family she had, died like her bodyguards did? She couldn't bare all this thought of horrendous possibilities and tears began swelling in her eyes.

"Neon-sama?"

The young girl nodded. "I promise." She sobbed.

Eliza walked over to Neon and took out a pink handkerchief. "You are ruining your make up, Neon-sama." She took her delicate face and wiped her tears away.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Boss, it's time to go. The auction starts in an hour." The voice they recognized as Basho's reminded them from the other side of the door.

"Um, I'll be there in a jiffy." She yelled back as she swiveled herself in front of the mirror to examine herself one last time before she was escorted by her attendants out of her room, ascended downstairs and out the mansion towards Kurapika who was waiting for her by a black sedan she normally ride on.

Kurapika the object of their previous conversation, stood there in all his enticing glory and Lila's words came back to her, 'Try to study his appearance...' For the first time since he was hired to be her bodyguard, she never realized how much of a bishonen he was and how sophisticated he looked in a suit. She took notice of his soft looking blonde hair that went past his jaw, framing his feminine facial features and the intensity of his cat like eyes made her heart skipped a beat. Oh, and now the things Lila said was happening to her.

The young man blinked once, then twice, his eyes widened in their sockets. He had always thought his employer's daughter was a beautiful creature. She had always had that pure, alluring beauty despite her annoying, ditzy nature that could force someone into strangling her to death. But now, now she was just breathtaking. In all his years as a teenager, not once has he ever bothered himself to chase after skirts like Leorio always does, simply because he couldn't be bothered. All that was in his mind were rage and revenge. He swallowed silently, trying his best to get a grip of himself. Too enticed by her beauty, he stood rooted to his spot. As she approached closer and closer and finally came to stand before him, he still couldn't do even as far as to catch his voice or move a finger and his lips slowly parted, gaping pathetically.

"Kurapika?" Melody's voice was buzzing, he was well aware she called out to him, but he still couldn't take his eyes off of the Boss."Kurapika?"

A sudden nudge awakened him from his trance. Basho cleared his throat and Melody was trying to suppress her smile, knowing well what went on in their head bodyguard's mind. "A-ah, Boss." He bowed a little too awkwardly before he quickly shifted to the side and opened the door to the car to let the Boss in.

What the hell was he doing? it was supposed to be the chauffeur's job!

Neon jolted on her spot when he bowed and as embarrassed as she was, she practically jumped into the car without uttering a single word. She was unusually quiet, the others noted.

Once Kurapika shut the door closed, he heard Basho chuckled while muttering, "Excuse me."

Melody smiled knowingly at Kurapika. No doubt she knew what went inside his head from the sound of his heartbeat and that fact had made his face red with embarrassment. To avoid any incoming questions, he rushed to the other side of the car and went in, settling himself next to Neon.

As the black sedan drove off the mansion, Basho turned to look at his fellow bodyguard. "Our leader is a teenager after all."

Melody nodded in agreement."His heartbeat was playing such a beautiful tune." And it was the first time it did.

"Even the Boss, she was practically scrutinizing him as if she had never seen him before."

"I'll let you in for a secret." Melody winked. "Her heartbeat was in rhythm with Kurapika's."

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"Ne Kurapika."

"Yes Boss?"

"Do you think I look beautiful tonight?"

Kurapika choked on his own saliva, Meanwhile the driver who overheard their conversation, almost drove them off the cliff. Almost.

"What?!" Kurapika sprouted. It was the only respond he could manage and he suddenly realized he had been sweating profusely most likely from the moment he got in the car. No, probably before that… What the hell was he thinking anyway? He should not be thinking such things. He's an avenger; he lived for the sole purpose to avenge his clan, not acting like a hussy when faced with a pretty girl. Besides, it's inappropriate ogling his superior's daughter like he did.

She leaned in closer; rested her hands on the empty seat in between them, supporting her upper body and unconsciously revealing her supple looking breasts from doing just that, something unfamiliar roused from the inside and with a finger, he loosened his -suddenly tight- collar and gulped. "Didn't you hear? How do I look tonight? Am I beautiful?" Eager to hear his response, she stared up at him with an innocent glint in her eyes, with every question asked she leaned closer forward and the more suffocated he got. Damn it, he wished she would just drop it already. Couldn't she tell he's not comfortable with all this? Oh wait, she was just that gullible to begin with.

At any rate, he needed to be careful with his choice of words. If he said she's not beautiful, she would get upset and start throwing tantrum, probably gave him a black eye or two. Now on the other hand, if he told her she 'is' beautiful- well that just sounded wrong! If he was a much older man or a woman, he could probably answer that honestly with a breeze. Now he's a teenager, was there anyway to answer her honestly without having to sound like a- a pervert? He didn't want to end up saying stuff like Leorio… Gah, who cares, he's not Leaorio! And what about the driver? He's obviously been listening; his ears were practically peaking high with interest. People wouldn't believe how gossip travels in this household. Kurapika was willing to bet all his jenny, the moment this chauffeur dropped them off at the auction house, he would start calling the other bodyguards or whoever his closest friend was working within the Noastrade.

"Um, what do you want me to say?"

"The truth." She blinked, obviously not backing down from the subject until he satisfied her.

Kurapika was left with no choice. Well, at least telling the truth would make her happy.

"Y-yeah." Kurapika answered in a whisper, trying to avoid any eye contact. His entire face had turned red at this point.

"Huh?" she leaned even closer. Seriously, was she trying to seduce him or something? "Can you say that again? I can't hear you."

_Tsk, this girl is seriously a royal pain in the ass._

Kurapika cleared his throat. "Yes, Boss, you are beautiful." He repeated, loud and clear this time round, his blush never ceased.

The young lady eyed him suspiciously. "You are not lying are you?"

'_Tsk'_

"No."

"Then why are you looking away?" she pointed out. "When people lie, they tend to avoid eye contact."

If Kurapika was Leorio or Killua, he would have screamed in Neon's face. But he couldn't do that now could he? She's the Boss after all and he just needed to keep up with her for a couple of hours. _'Yeah right, a couple of hours in hell!'_ he groaned inwardly. He should have been the one to guard the house.

"Fine." He forced himself to look back at the annoying girl, who was still posing in a very sensual way that made his blush resurfaced.

He'd had it.

"You look beautiful tonight Neon-sama." He repeated once more, his voice sounded unexpectedly alluring than he intended.

Neon stared wide-eyed at him; rosy flush slowly crept up her neck to her cheeks. It was then she realized she was getting too close to him and she quickly returned to her original position and leaned back into her seat.

Kurapika blinked at her odd reaction. What was wrong with this woman anyway? Well, who cares, as long as he got her off his back, he had nothing else to worry about.

Their entire car ride to the auction was unusually peaceful for once.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again guys! **

**I wanted to thank you for reading this story. The reviews were wonderful, and I also want to thank those who have followed. **

**Well, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter ;)**

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**Chapter 2: The Auction**

The auction started more than half and hour ago, and instead of the usual irritating shrill of excitement from the Boss; bidding on all those weird ancient body parts, she was quiet, way too quiet. What's even more out of the ordinary was the fact that she had been stealing glances at him and he was getting more and more uncomfortable each time she did. Was there something on his face? No, not possible, he checked himself before they went out and no one else was giving him any kind of funny look.

He tried to ignore her for the better part, but after fifteen minutes of her not-so-subtle inane prodding, he couldn't hold his urge to glance back. He thought, maybe she would tell him whatever the reason it was she had been a nuisance. But nooo… Every single time he caught her red-handed; she blushed a shade of pink and looked away. The same scenario happened over and over again, it became a heated contest over 'who could catch and look away first'. Oblivious to them, their childish behaviors were attracting unwanted attention. In others eyes, they were a couple of teenagers on a date, having a frivolous disagreement of sorts.

_Seriously, is she sick or something?_

Kurapika cleared his throat, decided it was time to end whatever it was that was going on. "Boss, is something the matter?" his voice was rigid and one of his eyebrows twitched with irritation.

She jolted in her seat and looked away, trying to avoid any eye contact with her bodyguard. "W-whatever do you mean?"

"You do know you have missed your chance to get Prince Kuzo's tongue and the Minotaur horn." He pointed out and she blinked before realization dawned upon her.

Neon stood abruptly from her seat, her panicked eyes darted towards the stage only to find her precious Minotaur horn being pushed away by a bulky man in suit, to the back of the stage. "No!" she stretched both her hands out to the retreating object with desperation.

The crybaby she was, she burst out crying and her tears were flowing like the waterfalls. The crowd turned their attention to them, whispering and wondering what happened to the poor young lady. Some who recognized her as the daughter of Light Nostrade groaned indignantly and complained, telling them to shut up and get over it.

Kurapika cursed himself for igniting the spectacle. Well, it wasn't exactly his fault. He was just stating the truth to get her back to her senses and put a stop to her weird behavior, not that she's not already weird. But oh how wrong he was! He had underestimated her arduous tendency to drive someone stark raving mad. How did Dalzollene kept up with this spoiled brat anyway?

"Boss, you need to calm down."

"Calm down?! I've just lost two precious treasures! TWO." She yelled in his face with teary eyes. "And this is all your fault!" she cried even louder.

Kurapika stared at her in disbelief. "What!" he mouthed. How was it his fault? She was the one who had been acting weird, thus it was her own fault she'd missed her chance with those outlandish objects. It was not like they had enough Jenny to bid on more than two items anyway.

People around them were shooting him dirty looks, undoubtedly blaming him for causing the commotion.

"Baka Kurapika! Baka, baka!" she hollered childishly, her cries grew louder as she assaulted him, flaying her arms on him repeatedly.

Kurapika could feel his blood pressure shot up, as he glanced back and forth from Neon to the angry crowd. When he knew he was about to lose his temper, he pulled Neon by her hand and stomped out the hall like a raging Godzilla.

The moment they got outside, he pivoted around to face her awful teary-snotty face. His frown etched, flaring nostrils angry expression was as dreadful as Leorio's. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" it was his turn to yell, directly in her face.

The girl instantly stopped her crying and stared wide teary eyes at her bodyguard. To say Neon was more than a little surprised was an understatement. She had never been yelled at before in her entire life, not even her father ever did. His face was too close and she could see something odd was happening with his eyes.

"You have been leering at me the entire afternoon, do you have something to say to me? If you don't, then don't blame me you didn't get to bid on anything! It's your own fault you spoiled little-" he paused when he realized he had gone too far. He just yelled at his Boss. "Damn it!" he gritted his teeth as he grunted. He reminded himself to stay calm or he would turn into Leorio at this rate. The thought of him turning into a teenager with a face as old as a man in his thirties, with the addition of having a temper as bad as a gorilla's, sent shivers through his spine. He must have looked like an animal when he yelled at Neon.

He expected a slap from her or a witty comeback, but none. She just blinked, her eyes never left his.

Recognizing that absent-minded look on her face, he squinted his eyes. "What now?" he grumbled under his breath.

Neon raised and pointed her shaky little finger at his eyes. "Your eyes."

Realization hit him and he turned his back on her. His eyes must have turned red the moment his anger ignited and when his face got too close to hers, she must have noticed the change. Even with contacts, people could still see the blazing red behind, although they were subtler than when he wears nothing for cover up. But that didn't explain why she had kept stealing glances at him.

Of course he knew, one day the Nostrade might found out about his eyes and identity as the last survivor of the Kurta. He had taken everything into consideration, even before he took a dive into the underground society, working for a mafia. The many possibilities spiraling in his head, especially the thought of having his eyeballs dug out of their sockets… he could imagine Neon Nostrade stood before him, innocent smile on her face as she demanded his eyes for one of her collections. When that time comes, he would resort to any means possible to prevent _them_ from taking his legacy from him even if it meant killing this girl.

Killing?

No. He wasn't sure if he would, after Uvogin… He would not resort to murder anyone other than the Spiders.

"Kurapika, What's wrong with your eyes?" the young lady appeared before him, her face was filled with curiosity.

"… … Nothing." He closed his eyelids as he slightly tilted his head down.

Neon frowned. "You are lying."

Kurapika took a deep breath to calm himself. He didn't bother to give her an answer to her obvious statement.

"Hey, I am talking to you!"

Though the annoyance was still there, Kurapika fluttered his eyes open when he felt his anger dissipated. _Stay calm and don't let this girl gets to you._ He told himself.

"Let's go back Boss." He unceremoniously made his way towards the door, leaving her behind as if he wasn't supposed to escort her.

How dare he! How could he just ignore her and left her behind as if she was the bodyguard and not him? _Just wait until daddy hears about this and he'd be dead meat!_

He swiveled his head around and raised a brow. "Are you coming?"

Neon huffed in anger and crossed her arms over her chest, looking away, her nose up in the air. Well, she wasn't about to back down until he answered her question honestly. Then, maybe she would let him escorted her back to the hall like a proper bodyguard.

Kurapika sighed. He forgot she was as stubborn as a mule. "You will miss Reinstein's brain if you won't hurry." He smirked inwardly, that outta get her to comply.

The defeated look on her face was priceless. "Ugh… Shut up!" she yelled after him. Nonetheless, she complied; stomping her way unladylike past him and into the hall.

Kurapika rolled his eyes, following his lady Boss's lead. _It's like dealing with a five year __old_, he noted inwardly.

Less than two hours to go and he'd be free from this she-devil for the day.

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The auction lasted longer than he had initially thought. No Scarlet Eyes to bid on, and since the Nostrade was low on budget; they had nothing to bring home with and the Boss was utterly disappointed and upset. In fact, she was on the verge of tears and in _one, two, three…_

Neon cried a river as she stomped her feet like a child losing all her toys to someone else.

For a sixteen year old to act like this in public… _this girl needs a therapy session with the most talented psychiatrist in the world and fast._

"Let's go Boss. The driver is waiting for us outside." He had to get her out of this place quick, before they attracted any more unwanted attention. They, Neon Nostrade and Kurapika the bodyguard, had been the stars of monumental humiliation for the major part of the afternoon. Aside from their sideshow, their greatest flounder was the fact that they didn't have enough within the Nostrade to bid for something over 10 billion Jenny. After Neon lost her Nen ability to Chrollo Lucifer and the unpaid 3 billion Jenny bid on the fake Scarlet eyes back in Yorknew City, imagine the state of disgrace and break down the old man Light Nostrade would be in when he heard about this. Well, the old man was at fault for not heeding his word of advice. The 10 billion Jenny they had today was not even theirs to begin with; they had to resort to petty thievery. Kurapika was aware that he had become something he hated. However, in order to achieve his goals; to retrieve his brethren's eyes, he would do anything. When he calculated, the money they had was enough for at least two items. However, there was always someone else much more eager to get those objects. Maybe those rare body parts are getting popular? If so, he'd have to prepare more Jenny's for his clan's Scarlet Eyes.

Neon nodded nevertheless, her cries never ceased. At least she listened to him this time. But before they could take another step, a man Kurapika had been avoiding for the last few hours, appeared before them with all his bald and annoying glory.

"Oh well, what do we have here?" A smug look on Zenji's face as he was approaching them with his stubby feet.

Kurapika frowned and Neon stopped her incessant crying.

"Little Miss Neon Nostrade couldn't get anything she wants from her bankrupt daddy."

"What do you want?" the Kurta questioned the man who called himself the head of all mafia with a stern look on his face.

"Oh nothing, I'm just here to see how Light's little princess is doing. After all, I did get all the things she wanted."

Kurapika raised a brow. "What are you talking about? Different people bid for all the objects Boss wants."

"Oh, haven't I told you that I was the one who hired them?" the old chubby man grinned atrociously. "Now then…" he moved closer and stopped before Neon who just watched him in confusion. All sorts of questions went through her head; who was this? What did he want? Why was he doing all this? Was he one of her father's enemies?

Zenji suddenly had a perverted look on his face. The creepy old man was practically undressing Neon on the spot and poor Neon, who couldn't understand exactly what he was trying to do; felt a dreading feeling coursed through her, and she took a cowardly step back, gripping on Kurapika's suit.

"I can give all those useless stuff to you if you would just come with me." Zenji was trying to touch Neon. However, Kurapika put a stop to his endeavor as he took a protective stance in front of his Boss, looking down at the bald man with a dangerous look on his face. "Stay away from Boss." He threatened.

All of a sudden, Zenji was reminded of the time after the auction in Yorknew City; where Zenji had threatened to kill this cocky brat with a gun, only to had his plan backfired when this kid had threatened him with his red glowing eyes. "Tsk!" Zenji took a few steps back as the fear he had felt from that past encounter was starting to take effect once again.

Recognizing Zenji's reaction as a sign of his withdraw, Kurapika pivoted his head and gave his Boss a small reassuring smile and Neon couldn't help but feel entranced. It was the first time she had seen him smile since the day he started working as her bodyguard. She couldn't tell what triggered it, but she was unreasonably happy and she felt her spirit lifted.

"Boss."

"Hmm?"

"You can let go now." He referred to her tiny fingers gripping tightly on his suit.

Neon just stared at him for a moment, until realization hit her. She looked down at her velvet heels; her face was heating like a microwave. "I am sorry." It came out of nowhere. It was the first time she had ever apologized to anyone. What was wrong with her tonight? She had been acting all weird and so un-Neon-ish. Was this what Eliza and Lila had meant? This beautiful feeling of her stomach flopping, heart beat accelerating, her mind constantly went blank... She just found herself drawn to Kurapika, and she couldn't stop herself from examining his handsome yet delicate features and lost her senses in their perfection; his high cheekbones, clear skin, well defined nose, and don't get her started with his eyes. Speaking of his eyes, she was desperate to find out what did happen to his eyes when he yelled at her before.

"Come on, we should go." Kurapika gestured for her to make the first step.

She jolted slightly before she glanced up at him, her face flushed pink as she smiled and firmly nodded. "Unn, let go." she said and started walking off, followed by Kurapika by her side and passed by Zenji without even throwing him another look.

Zenji gritted his teeth, his knuckles creaked as his grip tightened. He might have lost this time, but he would definitely find another way to destroy Light Nostrade, and that conceited bodyguard of his.

When the time comes, he would make them regret they ever messed with him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Ah, I want to thank everyone for the support so far. I am so happy you like this story, and your words encouraged me to write. **

**This chapter is a little longer than the first two chapters. I just hope you will enjoy it.**

**Happy reading everyone :)**

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**Chapter 3: Apology**

"Neon-sama, is something on your mind?" From the sound of Eliza's voice, Neon could tell she was worried. She didn't even need to turn her head around or disrupt Eliza's gentle hands; that were carefully combing her silky blue hair to see the older woman's brows knitted together with concern.

Neon was aware she hadn't been herself lately. Her mind constantly drifted someplace else entirely new. For as long as she'd lived in this world, it was the first time she had ever experienced such disturbance. She had always been a bubbly girl, couldn't careless whatever was happening to the world, as long as her desires were fulfilled- and that normally revolves around; body parts, dresses, shoes, accessories, basically everything Neon wants, Neon gets- then she'd be content.

"Where's Kurapika? I haven't seen him for days." She asked for the third time that day and the last time she did was an hour ago. It wasn't as if the boy in subject had always been there to guard her and frankly, she hadn't given it much thought, until the night after the auction. That night hadn't been a pleasant one; she didn't get to bring anything home for her collection, partly because of Kurapika and mainly because of that creepy bald man, whatever his name was. However, despite of those unpleasant things, that night she went to bed with a smile on her face. And it was all thanks to the magical, fairytale moment- like a knight in shining armor, Kurapika had shielded her from the perverted baldy. Of course it was obviously Kurapika's job to safeguard her from any harm, but she couldn't help but feel like a butterfly in a garden full of sunshine and flowers and it wasn't like this when Dalzollene or the other bodyguards did the same. When a handsome man your age was the one guarding you instead of some older guy in their late twenties or thirties, you can pretty much feel the difference between the experiences.

From the day after that night, she would –on instinct- be searching for the young bodyguard's presence, only to be disappointed when she found out that he wouldn't be guarding her for the day and she was getting impatient by the minute. She needed to see him, and have him do all sorts of things with her; things like playing poker, shopping and all other kinds of fun stuff.

Eliza quietly groaned, rolling her eyes with irritation. "He's with your father." she repeated the answer she gave her lady an hour ago, as she did an hour before that, yesterday, and the day before yesterday. She couldn't even count the number of times she had answered the same question for just _one day_ with all her fingers, and that included her fingernails and toenails altogether. As sweet as young lady Neon could be, she was also a pain in the neck. And frankly, Eliza had almost given up on this job itself, and why she hadn't was a complete mystery. The first time she'd worked there, she thought she was only there for the money and Squala's company. Now that the Nostrade was technically bankrupt and the fact that her lover was dead, murdered tragically on duty, it was only sane that she should have just quit and get a new job. Maybe she should write a resignation letter later that night. Even with her gone, Neon would still have Lila and that is if Lila hadn't thought about resigning too.

Neon pouted and crossed her arms over her chest in a childish manner. "Seriously, is he my bodyguard or daddy's?" No one knows about this, but apparently, her daddy was the main reason behind why she hadn't gone over to Kurapika and asks him to play with her, instead of just sitting around in her room, waiting for him all day. Neon would not admit it herself, but she was afraid to see her father. Ever since they found out that she had suddenly unable to use her power or predict the future, it was no secret that Light Nostrade had been miserable. He refused to eat. He locked himself in his office and had been ignoring phone calls from his supposedly business partners. Neon was aware, she was the cause of all her father's troubles. She recently found out that he was unable to pay his debts and Kurapika was the reason why the Nostrade family was still living in their mansion and Neon eating well and groomed. Nobody dared to tell her and she was kept in the dark about everything, until two nights ago when she'd slipped into Kurapika's room –only to find it empty-, she overheard the conversation between Basho and Linssen in the Bodyguard's quarter's hallway. The fact had deeply perturbed her, first of all she was angry that everyone thought she didn't need to know about her family situation and secondly, she was angry at herself for being unable to summon her Lovely Ghostwriter. When she went back to her room that night, she didn't sleep. She was up all night, with a piece of paper and a pen, trying all her might with hope to finally be able to predict the future again. But of course, all those time she spent concentrating was in vain.

"Forgive me for being blunt Neon-sama, but why are you so eager to see Kurapika?" There, she'd said it. Eliza had been holding this question to herself for the past couple of days, for fear it would be inappropriate for a servant like her to ask her mistress. She was getting bolder, and all thanks to her will that she would finally quit this God forsaken job. Words were getting around that Neon Nostarde had a crush on Kurapika, her newly appointed head bodyguard. Eliza could not believe what she had heard, she was curious and nobody was foolish enough to put their job on the line over some silly teenage gossip. And she had a feeling that Lila and herself had something to do with it, because the rumor started from the night when they suggested to the lady that she should start _getting friendly_ with Kurapika.

Neon hesitated for a moment, but she decided to just tell Eliza. She was -afterall- the closest person she would call a friend, aside from Lila. " Remember that auction night?"

"Uhum."

"I did as you and Lila had told me. Well, not the 'getting to know him' part, but the other one."

They did say those other unnecessary things about Kurapika_- but wait a second-_ Lila was actually the one who planted that idea in the innocent little lady!

"You were right. He is… as handsome as an angel, and I almost forgot he's actually a mortal man." Neon folded her hands together in a ball and sighed dreamily. Meanwhile, Eliza sweat dropped behind her and thought the young miss was exaggerating. "At first I thought he was a huge jerk, but then he protected me from daddy's enemy. I don't know what his name was, but that guy was freaking me out. I mean-" she went on and on with her story and when she finished, she re-tell the entire story in a whole different way, she even jumped out of her bed and started acting.

When Eliza couldn't handle anymore of her repeating story, she forced a smile to her face and asked the one other thing she had on her mind, not far different from what she had asked earlier, but it was more straight forward. "Do you have a crush on him?"

Neon paused momentarily, stared blankly at the maid and when her question slowly registered in her mind, her face went pink. Eliza almost smirked in response, but tried to hold herself back until she heard the clear answer. "I- I don't know." Neon blurted, her face was getting hotter by the minute and she gripped on her skirt to control her sudden burst of emotion.

Eliza wanted to slap her own forehead with the palm of her hand for being one of the people who had caused this childish crush between a mistress and her bodyguard, although it was most likely one sided. She couldn't see Kurapika having return that childish crush. Well seriously, who in their right mind would have a crush on Neon Nostrade? _Well, she's a beautiful young lady, I'll give her that._ Other than that, she's a demanding, hard as nails little brat. Eliza beat herself for putting those thoughts into Neon's innocent mind. To hell with that! She would have a very long talk with Lila after this, because she was the one who actually implanted the very ideas in details. All Eliza did was, encouraging Neon to make friends with Kurapika, because she actually felt sorry for the young miss. The poor girl never hung out with anyone her age, she must be lonely.

Even though it's just a tiny little bit of a crush, Eliza seriously didn't know head start that Neon would actually feel at least something for Kurapika. The boy had been in this house for at least a couple of months, and Neon just realized his good looks now? And to the point of exaggerating? It was just plain weird. Was Neon really that ignorant of who was guarding her, that she didn't even took notice of even the obvious things like their looks? But despite being her bodyguard, he was rarely around Neon. Eliza could bet on her money, they had only seen each other a total of twenty four hours and all that put together from the day Kurapika started working here. She'd had to agree with Neon, Kurapika spent way too much time with Light Nostrade rather than with the daughter- who he was supposed to guard.

"Ha-ha, don't worry about it Neon-sama. It's normal for a teenage girl to feel something from just watching a pretty-boy."

"You think so?" Neon smiled in relief. "And does that mean he also has a crush on me? Since, well… He kind of told me that I looked beautiful that night."

That was not the impression Eliza was trying to get to Neon.

"Um…He did?" From what she'd heard, Neon demanded the poor boy to answer her truthfully and she did it in a rather– seductive way. Most likely unintentional, but who knows what's on the Boss mind.

"Yes, and I think he's telling the truth."

"But I don't think-" Eliza mumbled.

"What was that?" Neon pivoted her head and was eying her attendant carefully, as if she would jump and bite her head off if she said something she didn't want to hear.

"N-Nothing."

"You know what, I am going to see him right now." Neon declared and she got up from her bed carelessly. 'Maybe I'll go and check up on daddy too while I'm at it.' She noted to herself. As unnerving as the thought of facing her father with nothing to show of the future, there's no way they'd just avoid each other for the rest of their lives. They are still family afterall, and her daddy was the only family she had.

"But Neon-sama, I haven't done with your-" before Eliza could finish her sentence, Neon was already stormed out of her room, leaving the older woman sitting on the side of the bed with a wooden comb in her hand. "-hair."

As she was leaping her way upstairs, her hands were pulling up her long skirt high enough to avoid tripping herself. Her long hair was swaying in a graceful dance, free from the usual tight bandana that held them in place. Neon was elated, as she grew closer towards her destination, her heart leaped faster and faster and a wide smile graced her lips.

Kurapika sighed warily the moment he stepped outside of Light Nostrade's office. That useless old man could do nothing but worry about the future, stressing himself over what to do rather than do anything at all. Kurapika was unofficially the new head of the Nostrade's house, in other words, the Boss himself. He was doing all the illegal paper works, dealing with drug trafficking, gambling, not exactly doing those himself, but he did assign guards and foot soldiers to do those dirty works. And with the number of soldiers and associates they had right now, they are seriously at a disadvantage of falling into the Nostrade's enemies. This wasn't exactly what he had in mind when he said he wanted to work for the mafia. He was still here, helping Light, only because of her daughter's hobby of collecting body parts. It was the perfect chance to get closer to one of his goals, collecting the eyes of his brethren, the Scarlet eyes.

He heard loud and quick footsteps closing in, and he instantly knew who that was. There was only one person in this house who would run like that. The girl turned around the corner, and revealed Neon Nostrade waving at him with a wide smile on her face. _What does she want now?_ Kurapika mentally groaned to himself. Not only did he have to deal with the older Nostrade, but also the young one and she's also the one who could cause him even more unnecessary trouble. And it was no secret she had been asking about him all around and she did sneak into his room two nights ago, traces of her was all over his room. She had been lying on his bed, playing with his things, trying on his outfit and her scent filled his entire room almost permanently. He could still smell her whenever he returned to his quarter. It was a sweet scent, yes. Even helped him sleep at night, but when he's conscious and wide awake in the morning, he felt like the Boss was with him in the room, sleeping on the same bed. Which was wrong, so, so terribly wrong. Whenever he stayed idle long enough, he would start to imagine improper things.

His behavior on the night of the auction was probably what triggered those thoughts. However, he had come to a conclusion -doing all sorts of research with books and magazines- that it was perfectly normal for a teenage boy like him to be captivated and –just a little- turned on from just watching a remarkably attractive young woman. It was also a form of evidence, despite popular opinions, Kurapika of the Kurta clan is definitely not gay.

Neon halted in front of him in a sudden stop and as she tried to regain her breath, she stared him in a way that gave him a tingling sensation. Her hair was disheveled and her cheeks tinted a light shade of red.

"You are here to see your father, I presume." Kurapika knew -in all certainty- that she had come for him and not her father, but he wanted to know why she hadn't come to him sooner. It was never a good idea to be too blunt and he didn't want to sound stuck up, thus he pretended he didn't know she had been looking for him. It was the only plausible course of action.

"Not really. I want you to come with me, so we can go shopping together." She told him eagerly.

Kurapika faked a smile and immediately lied through his teeth. "Sorry, but I still have things to do." There was no way in hell, he was going to go shopping with this ditzy narcissistic excuse of a woman. He had heard of the horrors about going on a shopping trip with her. Hours of going around the shopping mall, and by the end of the day, he'd be carrying countless of shopping bags, all stacked up in a mountain that could fall any minute. No way! He'd rather stay here and do her father's dirty work.

"You can do it later. Now, come on!" she pulled on his wrist unceremoniously.

"But-"

The door behind Kurapika suddenly shifted open. "Neon?" The voice belonged to Light Nostrade -who was then staring at the two teenagers in confusion. When his weary eyes lingered downwards and found her daughter's hand holding onto her bodyguard's wrist, the alarmed Kurapika immediately pulled his hand away and cleared his throat to disrupt the awkwardness.

"Daddy?"

"What are you doing?"

"Oh, I was just getting Kurapika to go shopping with me." Neon explained, afraid to look into her father's eyes and for what's to come next. He'll probably ask her about the future –can be anything related to the sensitive subject- and so she decided to get away from him as soon as possible. All thoughts about greeting the only family she had, was thrown out the window. "Alright then, we'll be going now. Bye daddy." She pulled on Kurapika's hand once again, but before they could take a step further Light stopped her daughter with a hard grip on her shoulder.

"Neon, have you been trying to summon your Ghostwriter?" his tone was rigid and it sounded like he had been expecting her to do so. He sounded like a teacher asking a student if she had done her homework. "You need to concentrate, maybe then it'll come out."

Neon cursed herself for being there right now. She even thought about greeting her father before she got there. What was she thinking? All her daddy wanted was for her to predict the future. The future, the future, the future, that was all Light Nostrade always worrying about. Neon was not oblivious to the fact that her father was only using her for his benefit. He would give her anything she wants, as long as she tells him the future. And now that she couldn't even use her power, she was scared that he would deny her of everything and abandon her.

"I can't do that anymore!" she yelled, as she spun around to give her father a brave look while tightening her grip on Kurapika's wrist.

"Then try harder!"

"There's no point in trying. All you ever think about is the future. Have you ever thought about how I feel?"

"You know I give you everything you want as long as you-"

"No! I hate you. I hate you. You always lie to me, and now you are acting like _this_. You wont eat, you lock yourself in and you won't even come over to my room to see me. I-" as she spoke, her eyes began to water and her lips were trembling.

Kurapika could do nothing but watch. It was definitely awkward, being caught in between a family argument and there was no way to escape Neon's iron grip. She may have a small frame, but her strength was of a silverback gorilla and if he might add, her temper was in the same classification too.

"Kurapika, escort her back to her room and make sure she gets back to actually trying." The older Nostrade enunciate the last word with full effect and before Kurapika could open his mouth for his answer, Light went back to his room and slammed the door out of frustration.

Neon was already sobbing and crying quietly and Kurapika took notice that it was not her usual childish cry. He never thought he would ever see her like this, seriously crying if that even makes sense to anyone.

"Boss…" he uttered with concern. Kurapika's a smart man, knew lots of things, but it was at times like this he needed someone's opinion… _How does one handle a situation like this?_ He didn't know exactly what to do. Should he comfort her with a pat on her back? Offer her a handkerchief? Or a hug? No, the last one was out of the question.

Before he could think of an appropriate way to calm the poor girl, she suddenly took off from where she had been standing, leaving Kurapika slightly flabbergasted. "W-wait!" he called out and started after her before he could lose sight of where she was heading. He was supposed to be escorting her to her room, not running after her.

The young Boss led him to her room, and he grumbled to himself when he saw no one was there. He was stuck with the same situation once again. All that running, he was hoping he would bump into someone else and let them handle her instead, but unfortunately he wasn't that lucky.

He turned to shut the door behind them and sighed as he saw her shaking form; on the bed, weeping into her pillow.

There was no way he could do as Light told him to. How could that old man be so harsh on his own daughter –who had been trying so hard, wasted countless hours just on concentrating in hope to be able to use her power again. Which was a completely useless effort if anyone asked him. No one else other than him knew that her Lovely Ghostwriter was gone forever, stolen by the man he pursued to kill.

"Boss."

Sobbing.

Kurapika decided to approach the bed.

"Boss."

Sobbing.

He leaned forward, carefully patted Neon's shoulder. "Boss."

"What do you want?" she finally said in between sobs. Her voice sounded heavy, and her face still buried in the pillow.

"Your father, he-"

Kurapika jolted a little when Neon suddenly sat up on her bed, her lovely face was glistening with freshly shed tears and her eyes were glassy, the white surrounds her blue irises had turned red. "What am I suppose to do? I've tried so hard and I still can't do it." She continued weeping into the palm of her hands.

The young bodyguard stared wide-eyed at the girl, utterly muddled with the situation at hand. _This wasn't in the job description_, he reminded himself.

After a while, she just stopped crying entirely and she gave him a look as if she had realized something. "If I try harder, Ghostwriter will come back to me. Then daddy will be happy again and everything will go back to how it used to be…."

"Boss..." Kurapika was contemplating if he should just tell her the truth.

"And, and we can go to the auction together and I can go shopping everyday." Neon took her pink notebook and a pen layed on top of the bedside table. She was staring into the blank paper, holding the pen with her trembling hand, as her tears kept flowing like the waterfall.

"But-"

"I must try harder. I can't stop until-"

"Boss!" a pair of hands gripped on both sides of her arms and she glanced up to find her head bodyguard's face, her tears blurring her sight.

"Listen to me carefully. Your power is gone forever and it will never return, no matter how hard you try!" as he shoved those words in her face, she blinked a couple of times to shake the tears away and took note of the serious look on his delicate features.

"Why?"

"It's stolen."

"Stolen? By who?"

"Do you remember the man you went to the auction with, a couple of weeks back in Yorknew city?"

Neon sniffed and looked down on her floral printed bed cover to recall. "You mean Chrollo? Chrollo Lucifer?" she uttered with confound as she stared back at her bodyguard. _What has Chrollo got anything to do with this? _

Kurapika bit on his bottom lip at the mention of the name he detests more than anything before he answered her. "Yes. He is the one."

"But why? Chrollo is a very courteous guy. He helped me get into the building, took me to a fancy restaurant, we talked a lot and he was being very honest. He even cried in front of me. I don't think he would ever steal my ability. I am pretty sure he didn't." It was the first time Neon had ever seen a man cry, and not to mention he was a dashing gentleman. The entire scene was very touching, really. She even felt lucky, Chrollo was willing to openly cry in front of her. Therefore, there was no way he would ever have done that to her.

His anger and -surprisingly- jealously, brewing like a red tide with every word that came out of her mouth. He gritted his teeth, and he was pretty sure his eyes must have turned crimson.

"You must be mistaken." She was staring down at her lap, afraid to meet his eyes. She could feel he wasn't pleased with her answer even for the slightest. "One day, I will be able to use my ability again, I just need to-"

"What? Try harder? Are you really this innocent or are you just plain stupid?"

"Excuse me?!" Neon was clearly offended by his words. What's with this guy? Why the hell was he so angry? He didn't just yell at her once, but he had to do it twice now didn't he?

"Don't you get it? He is a bad guy! That man is a scumbag who would kill to get everything he wants. He is a criminal, the leader of the Phantom Troupe, the head of the spiders! He manipulated you, so he could get the right chance to steal your ability!" All those words came out spewing into space like a volcano that had finally burst out all of its pent up emotions. His eyes were flashing the strange light once again, his nostrils were flaring and his face flushed red with rage.

"No! You don't know that- kyaa!" the grip on both of her upper arms were tightened and Neon winced at the pain they caused.

He was so consumed in his anger to realize he had hurt the lady he was supposed to guard and protect. "He is the same guy who massacred my parents, my friends, the entire clan and stolen their eyes! You have no right to defend him." he hissed, his words filled with so much hate.

She stared at him bewildered. She had always thought he would never reveal his past to her and he just did, in a way that came down crashing together like a massive wave of tsunami. The fact that she had lost her power because of Chrollo Lucifer, the fact that the man she thought was a saint; was not only a thief, but also a murderer and the fact Kurapika's past was a nightmare compared to anything bad she had ever experienced. No, losing her chance with precious body parts or being lied to by her father was nothing compared to what he'd been through. Eliza lost a lover, and she cried for weeks. Neon couldn't imagine what her head bodyguard must have gone through, he didn't lose one, but everyone he'd ever known.

A new round of tears started brimming her eyelids as she chewed on her quivering lower lip. Her hands slowly went up to cupped his face, gently. "I'm sorry." She whimpered, a single tear dropped from her eyes. The words just spurted out of her mouth as if it was the only right thing to say.

Kurapika was stunned by her gentleness. His eyes doubled in size and his mouth went dry. Her hands were soothing his anger away and the warmth radiating from them slowly reminded him of his position in that house. He pushed the comfort away as realization dawned upon him, that he had yet again acted on impulse. He had to look away as he stood on his feet; his knees had somehow rested themselves on her bed during the explosion of his wrath.

Hee bowed his head apologetically. "I apologize for my indecency."

"No, I'm the one who should apologize! I'm an idiot for trusting Chrollo. I didn't know he-" she paused when she realized what she was about to say, afraid she would ignite the sensitive rage inside of him. "Still, I'm sorry for always causing you and the others so much trouble. Please understand that this is all new to me. Ever since Yorknew, I've felt things I've never felt before and I wish I had listened to daddy and get on the flight home that night. Because of me, because of me everyone-"

Her tears were threatening to fall and a light blue handkerchief came out of nowhere, drying her eyes and tear soaked face. Kurapika gave her a small smile, and Neon was mesmerized. He then opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came and she wondered why she had said all those things to him, of all people. She had been unsure of blaming herself for whatever happened to the people around her, but she did just poured that all out with a genuine sense of responsibility.

She caught his wrist and lightly took his handkerchief, holding them close to her nose and she took notice of its particular scent; a mixture of what she thought were of herbs and fresh laundry. It was of the simplest things, but she loved the smell of it and now she couldn't help but wondered if he smelled the same.

Kurapika watched her curiously with a raised brow, confused by her action.

"You don't mind if I keep this, do you?"

"I… don't really mind, but why?" he questioned with a disbelieving face. There was nothing special about his plain, cheap handkerchief he bought from the department store. It was a buy one get one free deal, and she couldn't understand why she took a liking to such thing.

Neon shrugged. "Because I like it."

"Huh?" Well, he just didn't get it.

"So, I'll take that as a yes." She declared and flashed her bodyguard the sweetest smile he had ever seen. "Thank you." She added, holding onto the piece of cloth in her hands like a treasured gift.

The display before him was entrancing and caused a rosy scarlet color to spread over his cheeks, making his face appeared childlike in an instant. He pulled his gaze away as he cleared his throat. "Y-you are welcome." He mumbled under his breath in a skittish way.

Before he knew it, Neon got up from her bed and pulled on his wrist like she did before. "Now let's go shopping, shall we?" she blinked at him coquettishly, but instead of blushing over her irresistibleness, Kurapika turned pale.

There was no way to get out of the incoming terror that was shopping with Neon Nostrade.

That night, Kurapika and his fellow bodyguards returned with terrible backache and wobbly legs.


	4. Chapter 4

**I couldn't thank you guys enough for the reviews. They got me motivated! And I am always open for any suggestion, so don't hesitate if you have any! **

_Oh, if there's anyone out there a fan of Hisoka and enjoy smut. You can read my HisokaxOC story. ;)_

**On to the story...**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Breakfast**

It was the first time she had ever gone shopping with Kurapika and she was so overwhelmed with happiness, then, she felt as if her heart could leap out any moment. She asked for his opinion with every clothes she tried on and even though his answer might or might not be genuine -knowing he probably said she looked good in every single one of them, just to please her- even so, she was happy. Happy that when he had those looks on his face; the slightly gaping mouth, the thirst in his eyes as they lingered on her bodily splendor and even when he looked away shyly, she could read him like an open book. With just those reactions alone, she could tell if he liked what she was wearing. When she got home and ran through her shopping bags, she found a very interesting detail. Most of the clothes she bought, meaning those she thought Kurapika liked, were all rather revealing in a sense. They were either skin tight, low cuts, short shorts or skirts, basically everything that shows more skin. Though she couldn't say she didn't choose to try on sexy clothes on purpose.

Starting from that day, Neon came to a decision that she must change her style and wear more appealing clothes in order to get her head bodyguard's attention. Well, maybe not all the time. She'd wear something cute once in a while.

As a matter of fact, she woke up early the next morning all excited; with her hair down, she wore a yellow provocative halter crop top, mini denim skirt that reached just below her buttocks and a pair of white high-heeled sandals. She had never felt more grown up and confident.

When Eliza and Lila came to her room to wake her up, only to be frozen on the spot as they stared at their young Boss in utter bewilderment. The fact that she woke up at six in the morning, dressed all sexy and pretty, came like a lightning bolt shocking them at daybreak.

Eliza blinked her eyes in disbelief. "Ne-Neon-sama?"

"Oh, Good morning you two." She sung happily as she was combing her hair in front of her vanity table and the two handmaidens took note that their Boss was in a particularly good mood. It was odd because Neon was never a morning person. It would usually take them more than an hour to get the girl out of her bed.

"A-Are you going somewhere Neon-sama?" Lila could not think of anywhere they could go to, such early in the morning.

Neon placed a finger on her chin as she put down her comb on the table. "Hmm, I haven't thought of a place."

"Then why are you up so early?" Eliza inquired, treading towards Neon.

The young lady ignored her attendants' question and got up from her seat. She rested her hands on her hips, posing like a model would in front of a camera. "Do you think he'll like what I'm wearing?"

"H-he?" Eliza was beyond confused as to what her Boss was planning to do, but she had a pretty good idea of whom exactly Neon was referring to. But she needed to confirm her assumption before jumping into conclusion.

"Oh, don't pretend you don't already know. I am talking about Kurapika. So what do you think?"

"Ku-Kurapika?" Lila came forward, standing just behind Eliza with a face of a person who just had a panic attack. Neon Nostrade was up to something and it was going to be big. From what Eliza had told her the other day, she knew it all started because of her, Lila cursed herself and her big mouth. How could she even think of suggesting such audacious- never mind that! She'll just have to pretend she'd never said it. That was what she and Eliza had decided, if anyone ever asked, they would deny, deny, deny.

Neon nodded to affirm, her eyes widened with anticipation. "So?"

The two attendants were in a complete dilemma. They'd risk upsetting the girl if they told her to change, and that would mean an entire day of Neon Nostrade in an awful mood and no one wants to deal with that. No one. She could tear down the entire mansion with her tantrum when that happens. On the other hand, if they told her head bodyguard would like it, he'd be the one to bear all the trouble and it all came down to them feeling guilty and be blamed for.

They gave each other a panic-stricken look. One nudging the other to say something while the other mouthed 'What?'

Neon watched their interaction with a perplexed look on her face, tapping her foot impatiently.

Lila, who was pushed forward by Eliza, was stumbling with her words. It was obvious which scenario had the upper hand and she decided to go for it. "Y-you look amazing! I bet he'll like it." She gave their Boss a reassuring nod as she bit on her lower lip and gave her a thumb up. She felt it was necessary.

Neon eyed her suspiciously. "Really?"

"Of course!"

"Alright then." The teenager beamed at her two attendants. "Where's Kurapika? Is he awake?"

"Ha-hai, I think he's having breakfast at the servants quarters."

Neon took a deep breath, a smile lit up her face. "Perfect!" she waggled herself and dusted off invincible dusts from her outfit before she started pacing out her room to where her head bodyguard was.

"You!" Eliza smacked Lila's arm the moment she was sure Neon wasn't within earshot. "Why did you tell her?!" It wasn't a question.

Lila clicked her tongue and grimaced at her fellow worker and best friend. "Come on, you want to screw her mood? You can go right ahead, but I won't be the one handling her when that happens."

Eliza gasped incredulously, putting a hand on her chest dramatically. "And whose fault is it that she's acting like a lovesick teenager? To a bodyguard no less."

Lila nervously shifted her gaze to Neon's bed, pretending to be innocent. "Oh my, look! Neon-sama's room is a mess. I'll start cleaning up. You go prepare breakfast."

"Hey, hey! Don't change the subject!"

Meanwhile, in the servants' dining hall, the bodyguards were having a peaceful breakfast. As for those who accompanied Neon to shopping the other day could still feel the strain of their hard work on their back.

"You alright Basho? I've got more heat plaster if you need." Melody offered worrily. The man had been groaning non-stop since they saw him walking out of his room with his back hunched.

Basho poked on his still warm omelet rice, wishing he were still in bed. "It's alright. I'm fine. Thank you anyway."

"You guys had it pretty bad." One of Light's bodyguards pointed out, there was a tone of mock in his voice. "God forbid, I'm just glad I never have to deal with that brat."

Basho clicked his tongue once, as if he wasn't annoyed enough. "You don't have to say that all the time Ritch."

Ritch shrugged. "If I were you, I would have quit. That Neon Nostrade, is a demon in disguise. I don't even understand why you are still here."

Basho grumbled under his breath before he shoved a spoonful of omelet rice into his mouth. It was a question he told himself everyday. If it wasn't for his personal reason, it was the payment and the companions that hold him back, he told himself.

"I say our leader had it tougher." Linssen said in between bites, pointing his spoon at the youngest boy in the room.

"Yeah, how come you have to deal with Light's problem too when you have to guard his daughter." Neon's chauffeur, Karl inquired curiously.

Kurapika shrugged. "Someone has to do it."

"Hear that? You guys would be unemployed by now if it wasn't for our leader." Basho added with triumph, for some reason his words were directed at Ritch.

Ritch made a face and snickered at the older man.

"But hey, is something going on between you and lady Boss?" Karl asked Kurapika, being the nosey-parker he usually was.

The Kurta looked around the table and back at Karl. "Me?" he pointed at himself.

"Yes, who else could I be talking to?"

Kurapika groaned to himself, he knew this would come sooner or later. It was best to play ignorance.

"I mean, what's the deal with the special treatment at the mall?"

Kurapika narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Who told you that?" when Karl merely shrugged, the blonde boy glanced at Melody who shook her hands in denial and he knew he'd caught the blabbermouth, two in fact, when his eyes set on his two guilty ridden companions, Basho and Linssen.

"Well, you have to admit she was acting rather weird. First, she tried on all those revealing clothes just for you, ask only for your opinion and she kept asking you what you want, like that ice cream, the neck tie and having dinner with her." Basho sprouted all that in his defense.

"And she asked '_only you'_ if you are tired." Linssen added. "As if she couldn't see the rest of us there."

"Boy, I think someone has a crush on Kurapika." Ritch chuckled and the rest followed.

Kurapika breathed wearily, tired of all this nonsense. "Well, it's nothing. You must be imagining things"

"You sure? Be careful boy… First, she pranced around you in revealing clothes, and the next, she'd be laying stark naked on your bed before you know it." Ritch's warning came like a joke to most of the bodyguards in the room, some were laughing shamelessly, Basho and Linssen sniffled their laughters while Melody, as the only female, shook her head tardily, thinking how men always has such crude sense of humor. A shade of red painted Kurapika's cheeks, his eyes closed with embarrassment that thickened in his throat like phlegm.

As if he wasn't embarrassed enough, the object of their conversation and his fellow butt of the joke herself marched into the dining hall wearing the most provocative of clothes.

The entire hall went dead quiet, the surprise and shock made them look like a school of goldfish, except for Karl who was choking on his own food.

"There you are!" Neon shuffled her way as she went to drag an empty chair and sat next to Kurapika, who sat at the farthest end.

It took all his willpower to look away from her barely covered top and creamy tights and look directly at her face. "Boss? What are you doing here?" the panic in his voice was apparent.

"Quick, eat your food. Then, you are coming with me." She took the spoon from his hand, shoveled a spoonful of omelet rice and tried to feed him with an "Aaaa…" she got too close and he took notice of her plump lips, coated with pink lip-gloss and his eyes betrayed his mind, lingered down to her cleavage and back to her gaping mouth. "Come on, open your mouth." Her voice recovered him from his trance and he shook his head vigorously.

"No, no! I can do this myself." He tried to seize back his spoon, but she wouldn't let him.

"Don't be a baby and open your mouth!" she demanded and when he opened his mouth to protest, she took the opportunity and shoved the spoon, filling his mouth with omelet rice.

The other bodyguards watched their interaction in astonishment and they were too shocked to stand from their sit to bow before their mistress. The fact that Light Nostrade's daughter -who they always seen wearing her fortune telling outfit with long sleeve and skirt- now wearing such aphrodisiacal set of outfit and feeding her head bodyguard his breakfast, were truly mind blowing. And what happened to Kurapika's cool teenage boy image? He was so helpless against one girl that he made the entire scene rather comical.

"Chew!" Neon urged.

Kurapika had no choice but to obey. When he finally swallowed his food down his throat and was about to say something, Neon shoved another round of food into his mouth.

With one hand, he covered his mouth and waved his other hand, refuse to be fed further. The last time he was fed like this was when he was five years old by his own mother! It was so embarrassing he wished he could crawl under the table and never came out. He could hear his colleagues suppressing their laughter and he couldn't imagine what they'd have to say after this. "Stop, please, stop!" he begged her from the bottom of his heart right after he swallowed.

"Open your mouth!" the girl would not give up! She pulled on his hand and tried to shove another spoonful of rice, but Kurapika held his lips together so tight they wouldn't open and Neon was not going to back down, so she kept pushing the object. It was a never ending fight between who was stronger until the hard edge of the spoon cut Kurapika's lip, causing him to yelped in his seat.

Neon gasped as the mulish expression on her face was immediately replaced by a look of shock and concern. "Oh my God!" When Kurapika looked up at her incredulously, she saw the blood gushing out of his lower lip and her panicked eyes started searching for paper handkerchief and she took the one she found laying next to Kurapika's plate. Her hand went up to dry the red fluid that was already flowing down his chin. It wasn't a small cut. The spoon had somehow contracted with the teeth behind his lips and the intense force she put into the object itself only made it worse.

"I'm fine." He growled under his breath, snatching the paper handkerchief from her hand and pressed them on his lip and down to his chin. Then he looked down to check if he'd gotten blood on his tabard and sighed in relief when he found none. He didn't know what he did to her in his previous life, but this girl never fails to excruciate his already pitiful life.

"Oh boy…" he heard Basho, who was sitting across him muttered cautiously. When Kurapika glanced up at the older man, he found him pointing and Kurapika's dark orbs followed his finger to the person sitting next to him. Not Melody who was sitting to his left, but the one who had cut his lip.

Glistening tears formed in her eyes and hovered before they trailed down her cheek.

He couldn't stop himself from swallowing his spit before he looked around his fellow bodyguards for help. Most of them shrugged and had 'You are on your own dude.' look on their faces. Fortunately Melody was there. She passed him her own paper towel and gestured for him to give it to her –to dry her tears- and apologize even though it wasn't his fault but the other way round.

Kurapika squinted his eyes in frustration and took a deep breath to calm himself. "I- apologize." He pronounced his apology rather involuntarily.

Seriously, how many more times would he have to apologize to Neon Nostrade? Until the time comes when she finally decided to brutally blind him with the spoon in her hand and keep his eyes in a display tube? Speaking of which, how come she hadn't done anything or say a word about his eyes? She knew he was the sole survivor of the Kurta clan, yet she hadn't done anything he thought she would. Even though he was at ease, at the same time, it was unnerving.

She sniffed quietly. It was a surprise she hadn't wail like a banshee. "Wipe my tears." she mumbled in a small voice.

"Eh?" Kurapika mouthed as he motioned closer to get a clearer hearing.

"Wipe my tears." It was still inaudible.

"I'm sorry I can't hear you."

"I said, **wipe. my. tears!**" her voice boomed so loud, Kurapika could feel his eardrums thundering. He cringed as his brain went frozen for a moment.

He could hear his co-workers snickering in the background. They had their fun alright, just wait until he got out of this and he'd make sure he'd double their work. Maybe even have those ungrateful people suffer and give them a little taste of babysitting Neon Nostrade. For the first time, he was thankful that Light left him in charge of management.

Obediently, he used the paper towel he got from Melody and shamelessly wiped Neon's tears away, carefully not too hard, but he wasn't gentle either. At this point, dignity was no longer an option. He had been humiliated enough that morning and was already immune to it.

"There." He finished, and it was then he took notice of her staring at him with her giant pair of sapphire blue eyes. They captivated him for a moment with their thick lashes and the way they shone under the bright light, they made him feel warm on the inside. Only when she blinked, that he realized he had been staring. He tore his gaze away and gruffly stood from his seat, gathering his plate and cup of water.

"Where are you going?" his Boss questioned him in confusion.

"Clean up." But before Kurapika could take a step away from the table, Neon took his plate and glass from his hands and set them back on the table.

"Sit down, finish your breakfast." She told him with a smile as she got up from her seat. "I'll wait for you in my room. Don't make me wait too long." She finished in a singsong voice of a devoted wife and started walking rather graciously towards the door.

He was utterly confused as to where her persistence of feeding him had gone to and he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. Just a little.

Before she could reach the door, he called out to her. "But I have something to discuss with your fa-"

Neon pivoted around as she moaned and rolled her eyes. "Not again!" she growled at him, both hands on her hips. "Look, I don't care what you are going to discuss with daddy. Just come and see me as soon as you are done eating. Understand?"

"It's important, I can't just-"

"I said, I don't care!" she persisted, her hands balled up into fists to her sides and her pools of ocean colored eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.

"Fine." He groaned, rubbing his eyes. "Just give me 3 hours."

"No!"

"Two then."

She was about to contradict and refuse, before he breathed. "Please."

It was the look on his face and the way his plead had sounded that made her eyes soften and hesitated for a while, before she finally gave in. "Fine."

Kurapika released his breath he didn't know he had been holding.

"No more than two hours, or I'll come and get you myself." She warned him as she put a hand on her hip. Her nose up in the air defiantly as she huffed demurely before she stuttered out the dining hall with her hips swaying back and forth. The bodyguards were as still as paintings, listening to her footsteps as they gradually dissipating. When they could finally hear nothing, it was then they were able to breath freely, continue with their meal and most of all, to get to tease the youngest amongst them.

"Wow, someone's going to ride on that chick in two hours." Ritch teased aloud -on purpose, gesturing both his hands in front of him as if riding a motorcycle. "Vroom, vroom."

Kurapika went back to his seat and slowly dug his spoon into his food, trying his best to stay cool and ignore their teases and laughters.

"Kurapika, are you alright?" Melody asked her friend with concern.

How can he be all right? Even though he tried to hide his irritation, he was still uncomfortable with the situation. Neon was acting weird towards him and he's now the talk amongst his colleagues. He was worried of what awaits him after two hours and he was starting to consider Ritch's joke into the scenario. Not about the riding, but about the laying on the bed naked part. What should he do if that were to happen? He took a sip of his drink to calm his nerves before he answered. "What do you think?" his tone was calm and collected, not even bothered to glance at his friend and kept his eyes on his plate.

"Oh come on. It's not so bad." Karl attempted to soothe him.

"You have to admit she's very hot." Ritch added matter of factly. "And this is a perfect chance for you. I mean, you are young and I bet that teenage blood of yours is boiling with the desire to release that primal instinct. I say, you take this opportunity and enjoy what she has to offer. Take it as a service for putting up with her."

Basho made a disgusted face. "You must be crazy. She's our Boss."

"That makes it all the better!"

"Guys. I think you should stop." Melody tried to warn her fellow bodyguards the moment she detected another heartbeat coming from behind the door. It was from the person who they thought had left a while ago and also from the same person they were gossiping about.

"I'll have to agree with Ritch on this. Frankly, I'm kind of jealous." Karl admitted, completely ignoring Melody. "She's innocent, young, beautiful and have you noticed her honkers?" he gestured with both his hands, grabbing on invincible boobs in front of him.

Ritch raised from his seat and started posing as Neon in a very sensual way. "Oh Kurapika, punish me with your chains. I've been bad!"

Linssen shook his head, but chortled nonetheless. "That's just sick."

Karl joined in Ritch's act and poised as Kurapika. "I'll bind you with my Chain jail my fair Boss. You are mine, forever."

"Oh, Kurapika! I am yours forever. Just- call me Neon."

"Oh Neon!"

Kurapika slammed his hands on the table. "Enough!"

"What, you don't like it?" Ritch raised a brow and snickered. "Don't tell me you are gay."

Everything was blurry and fast, Kurapika didn't remember sprinting over to Ritch. When he got close enough, he grabbed on the older man's collar and shot him a foul glare, his fist up and ready to assault him in the face. "You can tease me all you like, but I can't stand you talking about the Boss like that."

"Heh, suddenly you are her boyfriend now?" Ritch hissed. "What'cha gonna do about it?"

"Hey-hey, calm down!" Basho was suddenly in between them and pulled Kurapika's hand away from Ritch.

Kurapika didn't answer. He didn't even know why he felt like punching the douchebag the moment he uttered the word 'service'. He looked away as he clenched his jaw and took a deep breath to prevent his eyes from flaring red. Ritch was right; it wasn't as if he was Neon's boyfriend or anything, so why the hell did he get upset?

"I'm done eating." Kurapika walked to his seat to gather his plate of half eaten omelet rice and his glass of water to the kitchen, only to be stopped by Melody.

"I'll do it Kurapika. You should go to Light." A small smile grazed his friend's lip as she offered him her assistance. Melody hoped he'd run into the person eavesdropping outside so the girl could comfort him with her words and tell him not to worry about what they'd heard.

Kurapika managed an enervated smirk. "Thank you." He muttered and walked out the door, his mind distracted, contemplating to himself of what just happened. He didn't notice the young girl who had been hiding behind the tree plant by the door. She watched his back longingly with a smile on her face as he strode away.

"Tch! What's his problem?" she heard Ritch hissed behind the closed door.


End file.
